I did not read the volume that preceded this book, “Ghost Wars,” but that was no handicap in quickly getting into the story of Directorate S and its peculiar role in the , essentially, defeat of American goals in Afghanistan. Coll’s incredibly vivid descriptions of characters, events and competing political and ideological interests in Pakistan, Read More …
Tag: Journalism
Speaking honestly to heart and brain about immigration
Daily Herald Editor John Lampinen called several senior editors and staff to a meeting this week to discuss the newspaper’s policies on reporting about immigration. It’s one of the most controversial topics of our day, and in our news stories, we want to give readers, whatever their personal stance, the most accurate information we can Read More …
Visual shortcuts, the ‘angry mob’ and the power of editorial cartoons
A picture, we all know, is worth a thousand words. But which thousand is often up to the individual viewer. This can be especially true when it comes to editorial cartoons. As a form of expression, a single cartoon panel can have a unique power to make a viewer laugh in agreement or growl with Read More …
Now’s the time to watch state government – and to watch carefully
Illinois lawmakers have been meeting and filing bills since early January, but the time you really need to be paying attention is now. And how you pay attention is also important. The state’s regular legislative session is scheduled to end by midnight May 31 each year, and lawmakers, like most humans, seem always to leave Read More …
Newsroom settings change, but goals don’t
I’m thinking about newsrooms today. I’m looking around me at a cavernous gray chamber that has been stripped of 23 years of personality. Twenty-three years of iconic news photos. Twenty-three years of baby, family and vacation pictures. Twenty-three years of signs and posters. Twenty-three years of desks groaning under stacks of outdated newspapers, knickknack displays, Read More …
Two questions, one answer on reporting
Two very different questions were directed to me at a recent panel discussion on journalism. One questioner sought to know why we weren’t reporting more details about a police shooting in Bloomingdale earlier this month in which a Carol Stream man carrying a knife was killed. From the wording of the question, it was clear Read More …
The diverse, and tasty, elements of election coverage
Random thoughts about news coverage as another election season comes to an end: • In 1999, school board and municipal elections were combined, primarily to save the cost of having two separate votes — municipal elections in the spring and then schools in the fall. It’s a reasonable goal, but I worry. Individual school and Read More …
Some help for following local elections
Keeping up with local elections is important, in some ways more so than keeping up with prominent statewide or national contests. But it’s not always easy. We can help. Early voting is under way in the April 2 municipal and school board elections. Local campaigns often are based mostly on some combination of candidate signs, Read More …
Anti-social media adds new dimensions to ‘silly season’
Election campaign time is sometimes referred to as the “silly season” because of all the wild stories, accusations and complaints that seep out of the political ether. It may seem natural to assume that dirty politics primarily involve high-profile, high-stakes state and national offices that offer the allure of power, recognition and wealth. Surely, one Read More …
Hook, line, sinker and attribution
There are many points with which I would take issue in the Walter E. Williams column on Jussie Smollett that we published Wednesday. That, in large measure, is the function of an opinion column, to engage a reader’s emotions and intellect. But one line of argument in particular about the news media is frequently repeated Read More …